12 Days of Christmas Gift Exchange Game

Q: Can I print the story?

Yes. Choose it in the Story list, type two names and your town, and press Print. The long story is two entries in the list: give both the same names and print each part.

Short: Twelve Days of Deliveries

This year Aunt Carol sent Uncle Walt a present on every one of the twelve days of Christmas, and Uncle Walt's house in Maple Grove has not been the same since.

On the first day it was a partridge in a pear tree. The tree went in the hall, on the LEFT. The partridge went wherever it liked.

On the second day, two turtle doves. On the third, three French hens. On the fourth, four calling birds, which sat on the curtain rod and looked RIGHT down at the hens.

On the fifth day, five gold rings. Everyone was relieved. Rings do not need feeding.

On the sixth day came six geese a laying, and on the seventh, seven swans a swimming. The geese took the kitchen. The swans took the bathtub, and there was no room LEFT for anyone else.

On the eighth day, eight maids a milking arrived with eight cows and asked where to put them. Uncle Walt pointed LEFT, to the garage.

Nine ladies dancing. Ten lords a leaping. The ladies dance to the LEFT, the lords leap to the RIGHT, and the hens have stopped laying altogether.

Eleven pipers piping. Twelve drummers drumming. They set up on the RIGHT side of the living room and have not agreed on a tune.

Uncle Walt has sent Aunt Carol a card. It says: thank you, and please, next year, socks.

That is all twelve. There is nothing LEFT to deliver, so whatever you are holding is yours to keep.

How it works

This 12 days of Christmas gift exchange moves the gifts round the circle while the carol's twelve presents arrive. A story does the moving: pass at each LEFT or RIGHT. Press Start: give me 3 words to begin.

Read the full guide

Play it with a story

Players sit in a ring, three or more, each with a wrapped gift. A reader tells the story, and on every LEFT or RIGHT in capitals the gifts all go one seat that way. Twelve Days of Deliveries covers all twelve days in about 2 minutes. The long story has two parts of about 3 minutes.

Or count and pass

1. Sit in a circle with one gift each. 2. Read or sing the carol. On day one pass one seat to the left, on day five pass five seats, and so on up to twelve. 3. After day twelve, open what you hold.

Tips

With 3, 6, 13, 26 or 39 players, count and pass brings every gift home: add one pass.
The long story ends one seat left after part one and two seats left after both parts.

Questions and answers

What are the twelve gifts, in order?

As most people sing it: a partridge in a pear tree, two turtle doves, three French hens, four calling birds, five gold rings, six geese, seven swans, eight maids, nine ladies, ten lords, eleven pipers and twelve drummers.

Why do some versions say colly birds?

The words first printed about 1780 have four colly birds: colly meant coal black. That printing also put the drummers ninth, the pipers tenth, the ladies eleventh and the lords twelfth. The stories here follow the 1909 arrangement most people sing.

Is there a rhymed version?

Yes. The Twelve Days in Couplets has 14 couplets, about 2 minutes and 7 passes, and names all twelve gifts.

Can I print the story?

Yes. Choose it in the Story list, type two names and your town, and press Print. The long story is two entries in the list: give both the same names and print each part.

All 4 stories

Show the list

Short: Twelve Days of Deliveries Short, all twelve days once, about 2 minutes. LEFT 5, RIGHT 3. One house and a great many birds. Gifts end two seats left of where they started. Asks for 3 words: 2 × name, 1 × town.
Long, Part One: Days One to Six Long, part one, about 3 minutes. LEFT 4, RIGHT 3. The van comes six times, from the pear tree to the geese. Gifts end one seat left of where they started. Asks for 3 words: 2 × name, 1 × town.
Long, Part Two: Days Seven to Twelve Long, part two, about 3 minutes. LEFT 4, RIGHT 3. Swans to drummers. Gifts end one seat left of where they started. Two seats left after both parts. Asks for 3 words: 2 × name, 1 × town.
Rhymed: The Twelve Days in Couplets Rhymed, 14 couplets, about 2 minutes. LEFT 4, RIGHT 3. All twelve gifts, a day or two to a couplet. Gifts end one seat left of where they started. Asks for 3 words: 2 × name, 1 × town.

The kinds of words the game asks for

Name a first name; a made-up one is fine. More examples: Sir Reginald, Professor Plum, Doctor Noodle.

How these stories were written: Adapted from the carol The Twelve Days of Christmas, in the public domain. The twelve gifts and their order follow the arrangement published in 1909, the form most people sing, as given at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Twelve_Days_of_Christmas_%28song%29, read 2026-10-02. The stories built on them were written for this site in October 2026. Licence: The carol: public domain. The stories adapted from it: own work.